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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25251169">tonight, tonight</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/neville/pseuds/neville'>neville</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Falling In Love, Fluff, M/M, Post-Battle of Hogwarts, soft</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-07-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 05:28:47</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,095</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25251169</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/neville/pseuds/neville</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>“I hope you will be able to rebuild,” Viktor says. “And that one day Hogwarts might look again like it did when we danced.”</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Viktor Krum/Neville Longbottom</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>22</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>tonight, tonight</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>fuck jkr. trans rights or die by my sword</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The air is still thick with the smell of battle, of blood and potent magic and debris, and Neville pushes through it as he comes to sit out in the courtyard. Yesterday, he was carrying limp bodies inside; today, he sits on his own in the quiet, the sun breaking and spilling down onto him. Today feels a little less like grief, even if Neville still wants to pound his fists on the ground and scream </span>
  <em>
    <span>why</span>
  </em>
  <span>. His head isn’t reeling so hard. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He can hear the sound of footsteps behind him, and twists on instinct, wand out. These are instincts he wishes he didn’t have, but Viktor Krum doesn’t even look shocked. He raised his hands calmly. “I just came out to breathe,” he says, voice still thick with his accent. Neville remembers finding his accent mesmerising, back in – what was it, fourth year?; remembers sleuthing behind him in corridors just to listen. He feels a pang of wistful nostalgia, then a sharp moment of grief for times that were simpler. “May I?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, yeah, sure,” Neville says, shifting over. There’s such a </span>
  <em>
    <span>presence</span>
  </em>
  <span> to Viktor when he sits down. There’s always a presence to him. It used to be intimidating, but now it’s comforting. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I hope you will be able to rebuild,” Viktor says. “And that one day it might look again like it did when we danced.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You could stay,” Neville says, so suddenly he surprises himself. It’s rude of him to say it like that, as if Viktor doesn’t have a family and a home he probably wants to go back to right now. It’s just – that he wants all of those things too. Hogwarts has been home for seven years. He doesn’t want that to change for future students. “I, uh – we’ve got room in my house.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh,” Viktor says, and Neville worries that he’s offended, but Viktor’s face melts into a smile. “I have to go home first. But if you don’t mind, I’d like to come back.” He looks out into the sky, raising a hand to his eyes. The sun is so bright that it’s blinding. “This place felt… before the last task, it felt safe. A place I could be at home.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Neville says. “It felt like that for me too.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It will feel like that again,” Viktor says. “I’m sure of it.” </span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The next time Neville takes a seat on those steps, it’s dark. The stars are twinkling above him, as if winking from thousands of miles away. He yawns into his hand, and isn’t surprised to once again hear the sound of footsteps behind him. He smiles. “Hey,” he says, turning to face Viktor. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s empty,” Viktor says. “I wondered if you…” He pauses. Neville’s never seen Viktor flustered before, but for a moment, it seems like he doesn’t quite know what to say. “I wondered if you would like to dance, my darling.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course,” Neville says, taking Viktor’s outstretched hand and clambering a little ungainly to his feet. “But I’ve got an idea, so wait for me, okay?” He plants a kiss to Viktor’s forehead, squeezes his hand, and dashes off into the halls of Hogwarts. They’re a little busier than they should be, full of students milling about and marvelling at the rebuilding – and honestly, it still takes Neville’s breath away what they’ve been able to achieve – and many of them stop to say hello or wave. Not one to be rude, Neville is polite back, and takes more time than he expects finding the Room of Requirement. Today it’s taking its time. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay,” he says as he steps inside. “Just borrowing this.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He ignores the stares as he hurries down the hall, record player clutched in his hands, grinning stupidly, because he’s been waiting for this. Waiting to feel this way again; waiting for the sun breaking over the school to feel warm all through again. It’s been a year and Hogwarts is beginning to go back to normal. Good normal. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Happy</span>
  </em>
  <span> normal. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I got some music,” he says to Viktor as he steps into the Great Hall. There isn’t a great deal of room, the tables still set out and the candles still floating overhead, but they can make this work. Neville has had to make so many things work lately. “I thought – I thought it would be nice.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Viktor beams at him. “Thank you,” he says. “That’s very thoughtful. Come here.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Neville sets the needle on the record, and almost sinks straight into Viktor’s arms as Mazzy Star begins to play. He doesn’t quite remember how to dance; it’s one of those things that he forgot, when things got dark. But Viktor adjusts his hands patiently, and no-one is watching, and it’s enough for Neville just to be close. It doesn’t matter if they trip; and when they do, they just laugh. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Viktor is smiling down at him, and Neville’s heart is beating so fast he doesn’t quite know what to do with it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>A year: a year of renovations, of picking up the pieces, sitting in corridors without ceilings, quiet tears, the day they finished the Great Hall and hung every house banner. Holding hands. Elbows brushing against elbows. The way that they all needed each other. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Seven months of Viktor waking up in the other room in the Longbottom house: seven months of breakfasts and dinners with him, and weekends out in Diagon Alley, and inescapable arguments with Gran. Seven months of not being so alone, of having someone to talk to when the nightmares kept him awake and he couldn’t even find the words for them. Then, four months of kissing: first uncertainly, at odds and ends, and then kisses that </span>
  <em>
    <span>meant something</span>
  </em>
  <span>, kisses like fire or like comfort or like safety. He bought a modified radio from George two months ago and they’ve been listening to Muggle songs since. Two months of </span>
  <em>
    <span>Breakfast at Tiffany’s</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Neville can’t tell if he loves that song or hates it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>(Well, he knows the answer. He loves it because it makes him think of Viktor. It makes him think of Viktor talking about maybe leading flying lessons at Hogwarts, with a dream in his eyes.) </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Does it feel like home?” Neville asks, squeaking as Viktor pushes him out for a spin. He laughs as Viktor pulls him back in, a little breathless. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think,” Viktor says, looking quite serious as he says this, “that you feel like home most of all.” He tucks some of Neville’s hair behind his ear, and leans in, and kisses him softly.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>title from the smashing pumpkin song! which also has lyrics that are relevant to this fic, i feel. viktor and neville are dancing to "fade into you", but you can substitute any other mazzy star song</p></blockquote></div></div>
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